Who: Carter and Aiden (plus an NPC vampire).
Where: The backstreets of Scarlet Oak.
When: Night.
Warnings: Violence.
They had worked together on more than one occasion, understandably so given they both hailed from the same country and had worked the same streets and territories for prolonged periods of time, but in recent years their paths had deviated, they had each taken different forks in the road and gone their separate ways. It had been years since they had fought side by side. Tonight would be the first time in more than half a decade. A couple of days ago he had called the bar to find out when he would be free to help him with a job and the night of the full moon had seemed as good an opportunity as any. They had made arrangements, simple as they were, and now here he was awaiting his fellow hunter’s arrival at the rendezvous point.
Carter went over the details in his mind, the facts he had in his possession. He had been raised to be thorough, to have all the facts available and use them wisely, and as he waited for Aiden to arrive he not only mentally checked over his personal inventory but the specifics of the location they would be headed to, the blind spots and points of cover, should they need them. With any luck it would be a quick job, in and out, things didn’t need to get messy. That, of course, usually meant that they would. Life as a hunter so rarely went according to plan.
The sound of a boot sole scuffing against concrete had him turning his head, the muscles through his shoulders, chest, and back tightening a little in preparation should the approaching figure be any kind of threat, his mind already working out which weapon he could put to use in the shortest amount of time. There was no need. Carter recognised Aiden’s gait, the distinct way in which he moved, and he stepped away from the wall against which he had been leaning in order to greet his ally and companion for the evening’s work. “Let’s try not to burn the building down this time, hm?” Carter said as much with the faintest shadow of a smile on his face but it was always a valid concern with Aiden. Carter had learned some time ago that you could never be too careful.
Who: Lazarus and Demi.
Where: A random bar.
When: Night.
Bars and clubs somehow managed to never get old. Not to Lazarus. There was always something new going on, something refreshingly debased and degrading for one party or another, something delightfully crude and primal. In the dark corners and secret spaces of these establishments Lazarus could find the most fascinating things taking place and if he was very lucky indeed he could join in, take part, even take control. More times than he could count he had come across one lonely soul or another and introduced them to all kinds of debauchery and sin. They were his favourite kinds of places, the perfect replacements for the inns and taverns and brothels of days gone by and they were darker and louder now, even more well-suited to his needs. In those corners and crevices he could perform all kinds of nasty deeds and the people around him would be none the wiser. Whatever prey he had pinned down for the night would find their way home and maybe, just maybe, discover something unexpected a few months down the line. Places like this were ripe with easy pickings, all kinds of victims and prey, and maybe tonight he would find something special, someone who could provide him with more than a could of hours worth of entertainment.
Prowling through the bodies that were milling through the bar, a moderately large place with booths and shadowed corners that would suit his needs wonderfully if he found something worth his time, he scanned the faces, searching for those small signs that he’d found what he was looking for. That desperate glimmer in their eyes, the quietly hungry look, the restless, almost nervous energy. Lazarus knew what he was looking for, he had spent centuries perfecting his hunting process. If the floor provided no luck then the bar was his best bet and that was exactly where he was headed when he caught sight of it. Of her.
The smoothness of her gracefully exotic features, youthful and so innocent to anyone not really paying attention, the way her hair fell, the way her eyes scanned her surroundings. Lazarus recognised her instantly. Even now decades after they had met he knew her immediately, at a single glance, and with an amused, intrigued smirk he made his way towards her, catching the bartender’s gaze as he went and signalling to the man to deliver another drink to the lady at the end. She didn’t look old enough to drink here. Fake ID, most likely.
As Lazarus came to a stop beside her at the bar the drink he’d ordered was being set down in front of her, one of his own coming to rest beside it. “It’s been a long time,” he said to her, reaching for that drink with that same smirk on his face.
Who: Jason and the Bernhard Pack.
Where: The Pack’s home (a warehouse).
When: Evening, right before moonrise.
The blankets were heavy in his hand, folded together in his grasp and gripped by strong fingers that were scarred across the knuckles from God only knew how many fights over the years, fights that had predated his supernatural healing factor. He could have carried them in both hands, evened out the load, but Jason was a big believer in always having at least one hand free to defend yourself. Or others. In recent months Jason had become responsible for a lot more people than he was used to and all those tendencies had amplified, as was perhaps to be expected. Having a whole pack to watch out for had never been in the cards for him but the job had landed in his lap anyway.
Maybe Devon had expected something like this would happen. Jason had trouble believing that, he had a lot of trouble really believing that Devon would ever want him to be in charge. As a second-in-command he had been great, he’d been reliable and dependable and everything else you could possibly want in a Beta figure but as an Alpha? Had Devon really planned for that, or had he just hoped that someone else would come in and fill the void left behind by his death?
Huffing out a heavy breath Jason rounded the corner into the large thick-walled room that would serve as their containment for the nights of the full moon. For the time being, at least. Putting those thoughts and doubts out of his mind was much easier said than done but he had a perfect distraction set up in the form of several restless, anxious young wolves who needed looking after. The blankets were set to one side on an old table he’d found in one of the other rooms, long enough to serve as a kind of supply station for nights like this. Everyone was in various states of undress, many of them stripped right down to their underwear, like Jason himself, but there were some who were still mostly clothed. A few of the pack, those still mostly dressed, were tossed blankets right away, those he knew weren’t comfortable with baring everything. Those like Anastasia. His eyes met hers briefly when he threw the blanket her way, giving her the smallest of nods as if to remind her that everything would be all right. Drawing in another breath he looked around at the others.
Moonrise was close. He could feel it, as he had been able to feel it for years now, ever since Devon had given him the bite and changed him. The first of a ragtag pack cobbled together from runaways and victims of all shapes and sizes. Devon had meant to keep them all safe and ultimately he was the one who had needed protection. Protection he’d never had, not from those who should have provided it anyway. Not from Jason.
Clearing his throat he said, “I know this is going to be rough, it’s our first full moon here, but the cages have been tested and the door is tough enough to withstand me when I’m changed, so we should be fine.” It was said without arrogance, it was just a well known fact that he was a force to be reckoned with when he was transformed, so it was intended to be a reassurance. Jason was never sure whether anything he meant to be reassuring really came across that way. He supposed he’d find out soon enough.
![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}